Effects of attention-requiring tasks on vestibular nystagmus.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the influence of two types of attention-requiring tasks on vestibular nystagmus elicited by caloric stimulation: mental arithmetic and a short conversation. The subjects were divided into four groups according to stimulus paradigm and task. It was found that conversation was consistently superior to mental arithmetic in engaging the cortex and preventing response decline and even reverse caloric-induced habituation.